The Cooperative Research Centre for Sugar Industry Innovation through Biotechnology (CRC SIIB) has continued to make good progress. Our new project portfolio is organised under four programs: Enhanced sugarcane farming systems; New product development from sugarcane; Education; and Technology transfer. These are designed to further our ultimate goal to: create opportunities that add significant commercial value to the Australian sugarcane industry.
The following gives insight into our research achievements during the past financial year.
New gene mapping toolIn June 2008, along with Diversity Arrays Technology Pty Ltd, we commercially released the world-first sugarcane genotyping service, Diversity Arrays Technology (DArT), for use by the Australian sugarcane industry.
DArT is a DNA mapping tool widely used by plant breeders of wheat and barley. However, largely due to the complex genome of sugarcane, sugarcane breeders across the globe have been hindered in their application of molecular marker systems for rapid genetic improvement of sugarcane. The availability of DArT breaks through this barrier with a cost effective and efficient solution.
BSES Limited/CSIRO Joint Venture leaders have stated that DArT will form an integral part of the Joint Venture’s ongoing efforts to provide the Australian sugarcane industry with one of the most innovative sugarcane breeding programs in the world.
In a nutshell:
- DArT is fast and cost effective and enables breeders to select for several traits at one time.
- The technology is poised to help the BSES-CSIRO breeding program discover how to enhance and significantly ‘speed up’ the development of genetically improved varieties with specific, sought-after traits, such as resistance to diseases, or high sugar content.
- DArT will be applied on a commercial scale in the BSES-CSIRO sugarcane breeding program in 2008.
Bio-plastics research
Our research into the production of PHA’s (polyhydroxy alkanoates - a class of biodegradable plastics) in sugarcane continued during the 2007/08 financial year.
PHA’s are a type of bio-plastic with many applications. For example, a car company might take a PHA that has been purified out of sugarcane for example, process the PHA’s by mixing them with fibrous components from either this crop or another crop to make door panels, or to make clear plastic covers that go over your lights or a whole range of plastic seat covers all of those components that go into an automobile.
CRC SIIB scientists are working on increasing the levels of PHA in sugarcane leaves. To date, they have successfully developed cane with 3.5% PHA, and established PC2 glasshouse trials at the BSES Limited Woodford Station. Currently they are investigating what inhibits PHA production and then aiming for levels of 7 to 15% PHA.
American company, Metabolix Inc, has invested in our bio-plastics research. Metabolix is a major American manufacturer of bio-industrial products with the aim to use biotechnology to develop environmentally sustainable alternatives to the numerous petrochemical materials and processes now used for many products essential to our quality of life.
Understanding how sugarcane reproducesAn important component of our work is to investigate the likely impacts of growing GM sugarcane in the field.
While sugarcane generally reproduces vegetatively, this is not always the case. Sugarcane can also reproduce from seed. In 2007, some of our researchers established a project to find out whether, if a genetically modified (GM) sugarcane variety was planted next to non-GM crops or wild sugarcane, it could accidentally pollinate them or introduce its genes through a stray vegetative bud.
To date, one aspect of the study has found that sugarcane seed germinates best at 36°C in the laboratory. However, in most sugarcane growing areas, temperatures are lower, so germination is much less. Our researchers expect germinating conditions to be even less favourable in sugarcane fields because the seeds dry out, are eaten by seed eaters or if they do germinate, have to compete with other plants.
More needs to be known before the results can be sent to the OGTR for assessment or before they are able to contribute to strategies for the safe release of approved plants.
*Note: the job of assessing the likelihood of GM plants spreading to the environment and possible impacts on human health falls to the government regulator, the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR). OGTR decides whether or not to introduce a GM variety.Producing nitrogen efficient caneIn the past year, the Australian sugarcane industry has seen prices of nitrogen sky rocket. Combined with continued speculation regarding the overuse of nitrogen and its effects on waterways, it has become more urgent for the industry to find alternatives.
Our research has continued to reveal how the sugarcane plant uses nitrogen or N fertiliser to make protein and grow. Our scientists are trying to identify the gene responsible for efficient nitrogen intake. It is envisaged this type of information will help plant breeders develop sugarcane varieties that require low levels of nitrogen to produce high levels of sugar.
Sugarcane proves to be preferred feedstockIn an environmental life cycle assessment completed in June 2008 (comparing Australian sugarcane with US corn and UK sugar beet), our CRC confirmed that sugarcane is a preferred feedstock for the production of bio-products.
The research revealed that the main advantages of sugarcane include its high sugar yields and the displacement of fossil fuels with surplus renewable energy from cane fibre (bagasse). When compared with corn and sugar beet, these advantages lead to lower fossil energy input, greenhouse gas emissions and possibly less acidification potential, per unit of bio-product.
The environmental advantages can be delivered by crops that provide high yields, use nitrogen efficiently with minimal loss to the environment and produce by-products that displace high-impact commodities which are likely to have a larger environment footprint. The main opportunities for further improving cane’s relative environmental performance are precise management of nitrogen and improved water use efficiency.
It is hoped that results from this report will provide the Australian sugarcane industry with an insight into sugarcane diversification opportunities.
Education meets forecastIn the past year, our CRC continued to play a fundamental role in the education and training of first-class biotechnologists. To date, our Centre is on track to qualify 34 young professionals in this area, the target number of students as set out in our contract.
Educating school children about biotechnologyIn January 2007, our CRC undertook a biotechnology education research project. The first of its kind in Australia, ‘Biotechnology in Schools’ is taking a three-pronged approach to examining how best to teach and assess biotechnology concepts in the middle and senior school years. The project made significant progress during the 2007/08 year.
Fundamentally, ‘Biotechnology in Schools’ involves transferring knowledge to students through active learning. Additionally, it is assessing student-parent interaction, and the development of links between teachers and scientists.
A senior school component aims to increase a group of Year 11 students' understanding of the properties and applications of biomaterials through digital problem-based learning scenarios. A middle school component is giving students the opportunity to explore the issue of GM crops in Australia.
The research team is also working with teachers to develop students' scientific literacy and look at how they can successfully transfer understanding of this 'new' information to the parent community.
Towards the end of 2008 we plan to use outcomes from the project to inform the development of teaching resources and learning strategies that support students' understanding of biotechnology, in particular, sugarcane biotechnology.
Continued commercialisation processesDuring 2007/08 we successfully commenced commercialising patented technologies and initiated patent positions on a number of other project outputs. While each of these brings only minor returns to our CRC IP Company, they are significant outcomes for our CRC and our associated staff.
The research and development portfolio for the second half of our CRC sees a continuing focus on the development of deliverables in keeping with our targets. Several of our original projects have not been continued and all the continuing projects are being managed to ensure commercial issues are a significant component of the ongoing research.